London Teen Shot Outside Bank

The following is a news article based on the events of the Alex Rider novel Scorpia by Anthony Horowitz:

Late yesterday afternoon a fourteen year old South London boy was shot on Liverpool Street outside the Royal and General Bank.

The teen-who's name was not released to protect him-was apparently leaving the bank when an he was shot in the chest by an unidentified shooter.

Witnesses quickly rushed to his aid, finding him unconscious and unresponsive. Police and EMTs quickly arrived on scene.

The teen was brought to hospital-the name of which was also not released by police.

Witnesses gave this account of the violence:

It was late afternoon and the congested London streets were full of cars, taxis and people trying to get home.

One of those people was this young teen. He was seen leaving Royal and General, apparently walking towards the tube station.

Suddenly, a single shot rang out and the young lad collapsed onto the sidewalk. He had a deep chest wound and large amount of blood quickly pooled around his body.

Several witnesses rushed over to the boy. A few phoned 999 for help. Others took off their jackets and sweaters, covering the boy and attempting to stop the bleeding.

Police and EMTs arrived within two minutes. The EMTs tried to stabilize the boy and stop the bleeding. They say that he was semi-conscious when they arrived, but was in complete shock and bleeding profusely. He muttered something about seeing his parents again before completely loosing consciousness.

The boy was rushed to hospital where he underwent an emergency heart surgery. The doctors expect him to make a full recovery, but say he will have to undergo months of physical therapy.

Meanwhile, the police are still searching for the shooter. They set up road blocks around the area, but to no avail. It is believed that suspect fled before the police arrived.

Witnesses are also having a hard time identifying the shooter. No one seems to be able to tell where the shot came from or saw anyone particularly suspicious in the area. Similarly, witnesses saw neither a person fleeing the scene nor a get-away car.

Due to the lack of motive and openness of the crime, police believe that it is a random act of violence-possibly gang related.